Tumbler type washing machines



May 27, 1958 Filed May 8, 1952 T. R. SMITH TUMBLER TYPE WASHING MACHINES3 Sheets-Sheet 1 May 27, 1958 T. R. SMITH 2,835,046

TUMBLER TYPE: WASHING MACHINES Filed May 8, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 May27, 1958 T. R. SMITH TUMBLER TYPE WASHING MACHINES 3 Sheets-Sheet 3Filed May 8, 1952 i A ,t 3 Y kwall 19, having a centrally locatedaccessk opening 21 therein andan imperforate rear wall 22 which issubstantially parallel with the frontwall 19. A plurality of v`spacedclothes elevating vanes 23 are secured adjacent the t inner periphery ofthe perforate V'cylindrical wall `17 to ,t Y clothes treating drum whichis relatively narrow; YIn the embodiment shown, the diameter of the drumis slightly ,greaterl than four times its axial depthl It can be seenYthat with a construction of this type, the clothing is elevated to aconsiderably greater height when compared to other domestic horizontalaxis tumbler type washing machines, and, sinceV gravity acts on theclothing for a greater distance, the increased velocity' of the fallingwet'clothing increases its agitation upon striking the bottomV of theYtub and this results in a considerably better washing action in a givenlength of time. While the diameter of the Vdrum is increasedconsiderably, the depth has been relduced and the surrounding liquidholding container 12 need not contain an excessive quantity of liquidduring the washing and rinsing operations.

Concenn'ic with the Vaxis of therrotatable drum is a Vsplined boss orhub 24 for receiving the forward splined "i `end 26 of a rotatable Ygenerally horizontal supporting drum shaft 27, which projects backwardlythrough an opening in the rear wall o f the container 12 r`andterminates in a rearwardly projecting end 28 journalled in a speedchange or gear housing 29 in a manner to Vbe hereinafter lmore fullydescribed; 1

In order to provide a rigid connection between the drum .shaft 27 andthe drum 11, so that both elements must .-move together, the rear wall22 of the drum is preferably dished forwardly about the central hub 24and a backvwardly projecting frusto-conical disc shaped web 31 has itsouter periphery 32 welded to the outer face of the rear wall 22 and itscentral backwardly projecting portion 33 secured to the hub 24 toprovide a box structure. l The casing 12'surrounding the rotatable drum11 and defining the washing or treating chamber 34 includes an loutersubstantially imperforate horizontal cylindrical wall 36 spaced from thecylindrical wall 17 Vof the drum, a -rear end wall 37, having acentrally located opening 38 v therein through which Vthe drum shaft 27projects, and

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a front end Wall 39 having a centrally located access open- Y 1ing41therein in alignment with the accessy opening 21 in .therotatable drum11.Y The rear, front and cylindrical walls 37, 39 and 36, respectively,are all secured together V,at their marginal edges to provide a leakproof and rigid 4unit. In the example shown, the opposite'edges. of thecylindrical wall 36 are ared radially outwardly and mate with similarflange portions on the end walls, and the entire assembly is clampedtogetherY through suitable `gasket material 42 covering the ends of theflanges-hy means of V-shaped circular clamping channels 43. The

container 12 is secured on the base construction 14 byV any suitablesupporting means, not shown. In addition, `under some conditions, itVVmay be desirable to entirely or partially insulate the container toconserve the heat in the lWashing liquid by lagging its exterior wallswith suitable Vheat insulating material 46.

,In addition to the access opening in the container, liquid meanslnotshown) to eitherv retain the liquidjn` the chamber 34 during the washingand rinsing operations or to discharge the washing liquid to drain, asdesired.

tioned below the outlet 48 in the container, a pump would not benecessary. Since the foregoing forms no essential Y cludes an inwardlydished inner wall 53 for generally restricting the access opening 21 inthe rotatable drum to deect any falling clothing tending toVpass'throughY th opening back into theY interior of the drum. 'Y Due tothe fact some of the falling liquid may be d ischarged through theopenings 41 and 49 in the container Vand cabinet and soil thesurrounding area, arubber gasket 54 is positioned about both accessopenings and it has an enlarged central section 56 mounted between theirinner and outer faces, respectively, to prevent leakage therebetween.VThe gasket further includes a forwardly pro- `jecting sealing portionV57 for contacting the inner'doorv panel 53 to seal about the opening49-and an annular rearwardly directedandoutwardly ilaring portion 58which` Y provides a delilector.V j

Referring now to the'supporting and rotating means Vfor the rotatabledrum'll, the rearwardly projecting end V28 of the horizontal drum shaft27 terminates and is journalled in'the co-axial gear housing`construction 29 which houses a two speedV planetary gear arrangement 59for selectively rotating theshaft27- at a low or a high speed. The end28 of the shaft is journalled in a bearing 61 and is recessed to journaltherein the Yforward end 62 Y,of a substantially constantspeedvhorizontal driving shaft 63. The opposite or rearmost end 64 oftheY driving shaft .projects through a pivotal or universally mountedcombined radial and thrust roller bearing 66 and has a driven pulley 67splined thereto; Thisrpulley is driven by means .of a belt 68 which Vinturn engages Va-driving pulley 69 Y secured on the drive shaft of asuitableconstant speed .drive rnotork 71 mounted on the base 14.Themotortmay ralso be utilized to drive additional mechanism, such as,.for example, a pump or the like, if desired.

'Ille driving shaft 63 extending through theY pivot bearing 66 is freeto tilt or pivot at this point, since the outer Yrace of the bearingis-carried in a collar or sleeveV 72 mounted in a rubber bushing-73 thatin turn is held in position with respect to a rigid, supporting frameconstruction 74 by means of a llanged outer sleeve 76. The

frame construction includes a horizontal channel Y77 extendingtransverse to the shaft and drumraxis and a pair ofvdownwardly extendingangles 78 whose'lo'wer ends are Ysecured to the base frame 14. YThis-provides a rigid construction which prevents'the pivotal end of thedriving shaft-from shifting laterally about its axis, and suitable ties,not shown, may be provided between the supporting frame`74 and container12 to prevent relative axial shifting movement of the rotatable drum 11.

VForwardly of the planetary gear housing 29 and sur-Y rounding the drumshaft 27 is a combination movable or Vresiliently mounted bearingsupport and damper housing V79 which is adapted to resiliently'hold therotatable drum ln the embodi- 1 ment shown, the inner race of a radialball type bearing 7 t)Y 11V inv ag'enerally horizontal position.

81 is slidably mounted on the drum shaft and the outer race iscarried-and secured within a recess 82 provided Yin the damper housing79; thus with any lateral'or shiftfing movement of the drum shaft 27,Ythe 'bearing and housing must'move with it.

The forward face 83 ofthe damper housing 791s Y It t is to be understoodthat, should a suitable drain be posispherical on a radius substantiallyequal to the distance between the pivot point of the fixed bearing 66and the rear wall 37 of the contain Jr 12, and suitable frictionmaterial 84 is secured thereon. This friction material in turn isadapted to frictionall y engage a similarly concave spherical contactsurface $6 providedV on an annular stamped bracket 87 welded on the backwall 37 of the container about the opening 38 concentric to the normalaxis of rotation of the drum.

In order to resiliently maintain the rotatable drum 11 substantiallycentered in its horizontal position during the washing operation, fourequally spaced radially projecting centering springs S8, only one ofwhich is shown, have their inner ends attached to spaced webs S9,forming part of the damper housing, and their outer ends connected tostationary brackets 91 secured to the back wall 37 of the stationarycontainer. The upper centering spring SS preferably has a higher springloading than the others and acts as a counterbalance to equalize theweight of the rotatable drum and average load of clothing, and thuscompensate for the natural tendency of the tub to tilt or tip downwardlyat the forward end.

In addition, the damper housing 79 is biased forwardly in the directionof the spherical seat S6 by means of a plurality of tension springs 92,only one being shown, which are also secured to the webs and to brackets93 on the rear wall of the container. These springs act to maintain asubstantially constant pressure between the surface 86 and the frictionmaterial Se on the damper housing to thereby resist and dampen lateralmovement of the tub when it is rotated about its axis during the washingoperation, and about its center of mass during the extraction operation.

In order to prevent leakage of liquid through the opeu ing 3S in rea;-wall 37 of the stationary container, an encompassing C-shaped annularbead is provided in the rear wall and a resilient bellows type sealingelement 96 having an integral annular outer enlarged marginal portion iscarried within the bead to provide a liquid type seal thereat. The'inner central porton of the bellows 96 terminates in an enlarged collarencompassing the drum shaft 2/ and it carries thereon a forwardlyprojecting annular sealing ring 93 which is adapted to contact the rearradial face ofthe supporti hub 2d for the rotatable drum. A compressiontype sj g encompresing the drum shaft reacts between the r race of thebearing 81 carried by the damper housi fr tie rear fare the bellows tomaintain the in ce. the hub 2d under all cor Referring now more omechanism 59, as shown the rotatable drum 11', drum shaft planetaryrangement S9, driving shaft 63 and driven pulley coaxially aligned. andare all rotatable about a horizontal Vaxis by means of thel motor 71.The housing 29 surrounding the concentric shafts and planetary geararrangement 59 also encloses a concentric constant torque limitingclutch 1131.

The planetary gearing includes a sun gear 1o?. secured to the drivingshaft 63 which, in the embodiment shown, meshes with a pair ofoppositely disposed relatively large planet gears 183 to provide for agear reduction. These planet gears in turn are each secured to a matinghub or sleeve having a pinion gear 136 formed thereon to form a planetgear unit, and the unit is journalled on stub shafts 107 projecting froma planet carrier The planet carrier has an integral hub portion keyed orotherwise secured to the inner end 28 of the drum shaft 27 to eitherrotate the shaft or` to be rotated by it. The pinion portion 1116 of theplanet gears 163 meshes with an orbit or ring gear 111 formed as part ofthe housing 29.

In Order to control the speed of rotation of the drum shaft 27, thehousing 29 is provided with a brake mechanisrn 112 diagrammaticallyshown in Figures 3 and 4. This brake mechanism includes a brake band 113carrying suitable friction material 114 thereon encompassing a slightlyrelatively rotatable or shiftable brake drum 116 which abuts a thrustwasher 117 to limit axial shifting movement in a: forward direction. Thebrake band 113 has one end 118 anchored to a stationary abutment 119,see Figure 4, and the other end 120 movable by means of an electricallyoperated solenoid 121 to either expand or release the brake 112 topermit the housing 29 to rotate, or be acted upon by means of a spring122 to contract the brake to engage the brake drum 116 to preventrotation of the housing. In addition, the edges of the brake band 113are guided by the thrust washer and a radial shoulder 12.3 on theopposite side of the brake drum 116.

When the brake is released and the housing is rotating, torque from therotating housing is transferred to Y anni shaft by means of the constanttorque limiting clutch 101 which includes a series of friction discs 12dcarried in a recessed portion 125 of the housing, with alternate discsslotted to engage splines 126 in the interior of the housing and theothers slotted to engage mating splines 127 on the drum shaft 27. Thetorque transmitted through the friction discs 12d is limited orcontrolled in a manner to be hereinafter described.

Assuming the drum 11 is to be rotated for the washing operation, thesolenoid 121 is deenergized and the spring 122 applies the brake 112 andthe housing 29 is held against rotary movement. As the driving shaft 63is rotated by the motor, the sun gear 1112 rotates the planet gears 193and since the housing 29 and thus the orbit gear 111 is locked againstrotary movement, the planet pinions rotate within the stationary orbitgear and this, course, rotates the planet carrier 193 at a reducedspeed. Due to the fact that the drum shaft 27 is directly keyed to theplanet carrier 193, they must rotatel in unison and the drum is rotatedabout its horizontal axis at a reduced speed. Under this condition ofoperation the friction discs 124 are spaced slightly from each other,therefore, no or very little torque or energy is absorbed at this point.

When it is desired to rotate the drum at high of extraction speed at theend of the slow or washing speed operation. the brake 112 is released byenergizing the solenoid 121. Upon release of the brake, the brake drum 6which has a plurality of intergral equally spaced adially inwardly andthen backwardly projecting lugs 23 thereon extending through matingslots 129 in the ard open end of the housing 29, is rotated slightlyani/e to the housing by means of a plurality of spaced oinpression typesprings 131 carried in pockets provided the lugs 123. These springsreact between abutment thfaces 132 on the housing and brake drum torotate or shift the brake drum 116 in a counterclocltwise directionwith` respect to the housing 29, as viewed in Figure 4.

A portion of each of the rearwardly projecting lugs 12S terminate in aninner end or cam follower 133 for engaging mating cam surfaces 13deprovided on an axially shiftable force transmitting ring or collar 136whose opposite face engages the forward friction disc 124. Thecounterclockwise rotation of the brake drum by the springs 131 forcesthe cam followers 133 against theV cams 134 to apply an axialcompression loading on the friction discs.

Since the-'springs 131 are preloaded, the axial force transmitted to thefriction discs is constant, therefore the torque transmitted from therotating housing 29 through the discs 124 to the drum shaft 27 will be afunction of the spring loading. Thus, should the load on the drum shafttend to exceed the proportional force applied by the springs 131, themating discs merely permit slippage with respect to each other. Theloading of the springs 131 will depend upon the` capacity of the drivemotor 71 and should be at some value below its safe rating.

As previously mentioned, when the brake is released and the springs 131act to apply a constant load to the Y'friction discs 124, the housing29V is free Yto rotate about its axis.` VSincel theinertia of the drumis largerwith'respect to the housing, the housing will begin to rotatebecause the planet pinions 106 will drive the orbit or ring f gear at ahigher speed than the planet carrier 108 will 'rotatei This increasedspeed is applied tothe friction "discs 124 and of course acts directlyon the drum shaft -to increase its speed. Since the spring loading onthe *discs isV constant, the accelerating torque transmitted to lthedrum'shaft is constantgthus Vthe drive motor 71 cannot be overloaded. wAs '-the drum shaft 27 increases in V'speed and finally attains that'off the housing 29, the drum shaft 27, housing 29 and planetary geararrangement 59 Will all rotate in unison at the same speed as thedriving Y,

shaft 63.V An important feature with this arrangementthat'substantiall'yV the entire drive mechanism is carried on the drumaxis andis eifective to increase the mass of the rotating drum Vtoprovide for improved operation.

In order to limit the axial end thrust of the drum shaft 27 in theforward direction, athrust Washer 137 is carried between the planetcarrier 108 and a portion of the housing at the bearing 671, anda secondthrust Washer `138 betweenV the opposed ends of the drum Vshaft'27 andsun gear 102, limits axial thrust in the rearward direction. The housing29is held in axial alignment by means vLof a thrust washer .139 actingon Vthe opposite face of the sun gear 102 and a second thrust washer 141disposed betweentherear end of the housing andthe forward portion of thesupporting collar for theinner race ofthe rear pivot bearing'66. Betweenthe hub of the '4 driven pulley 67 and theV inner race of the pivotbearing V66 is another thrust washer'142 which limits the forward axialmovement of the driving shaft, its rearward move- 'ment being limited bythe thrust washer 139 at the rear face of the sun gear 102. Y

27 and the brake mechanisrn-112 acts to stop the housing,V

it can be seen that theorbit gear 111 begins to stop rotating also.Since ,the'inertia of the drum is relatively high with'respect to thedriving .mechanism when operating at its extraction speed, theA drum nowdrives the ldrum shaft and it inveiect becomes the driving means.'Duetto thefs'peed reduction between the driving shaft 63 and drumshaft'27, and with the drum shaft rotating at f high speed, v*theVdrivingrshaft 63'in eiect becomes the driven shaft andthe speedreduction mechanism becomes.a"speedrincreasing mechanism which'mayresult in'drivingfthe driving shaft^6r3V pulley 67 and drive -motor 71atan excessively high speed.

Therefore, inorder to obviate this-situationrand to' provide aneffective'means for braking and decelerating the drum, there is shown,by way of'eXample, a centrifugally operated brake `oreclutcli mechanismV143 which in- -cludes a stationary brake drum ',144 journalled on'fanextension 145 of the hub of the driven pulley 67 and a` vpair ofcentrifugally operated -vveights or clutch shoes 146 pivotally mountedbymeans of stubY shafts 147 secured on the radial web of the'- drivenpulley 67. Pre- Vloaded springpmeans 148 disposed adjacentV the freeends of the clutch shoes normallyhold the same in 'its retractedposition againstj their respective stops 149, and the outer surface'ofeach'clutch ,shoe Vis provided with suitable friction material 1 51'adaptedY to engage the inner periphery of thebrake drum 7144.

Under operating conditions when the driven pulley'67 and theY drivingshaft" 6s holdthe clutch shoes 146 against theirrespective. stops A149while being rotated. However, at the vend ofthe extraction, when thedriving shaft 63 is accelerated above its normal speed bythe reversedriving ofthe drum shaft, centrifugal force acting on Vthe weightedclutch shoes 146 overcomes the restraining force of the springmeans 14Sand theyV move outwardly to engage the stationary brake drum 144 toabsorb'theenergy and vdecelerate the rotating drum at a relatively rapidrate. VAs soonras the driving shaft 63'reaches avalue substantiallynearits normal operating speed, the spring -rneans 14d/acting on ti e brakeshoes overcomesV centrifugal force-and .tetra-iets the shoes away fromthe drum 144 andfrnoves-v disposed exible cables 152 which have endssecuredjto Y lugs 153 formed on the outersurface of the brake drum andtheir opposite ends anchored to a portion `of, the supporting frameconstruction 13 (not shown). These cables are, of course, positioned sothat during the braking operation the brake drum forces are such astohold them in tension. l

Fromthe foregoing it can'V be seen that, .when theA drive shaft 63 isrotated above its normal speed, `the centn'fugally operated Weights areoperative to move the friction material 151` on the brake shoes 1,46into engagement withthe drum 144 to brake the same, and that while thisVbraking action is taking place the flexible cables 152 permit the brakemechanism' to move with the shaft'without applying eccentric loadingsthereto or other distorting influences on the rotating mechanismm Whilethe foregoing described mechanism will rotate the' drum 11 at low andhigh speeds and means are provided to resiliently hold-the drumsubstantially central with respect to its horizontal axis, under mostcondi-Y tions when liquid is being extracted from the clothing, Y*

the clothing is not uniformly distributed about thecintericr of thedrum. This unequal distribution of cloth# ing causes the center of massof the rotating ydrum to shift with respect to the geometrical center ofthe drum Vwhich may result in rough operation and, if the .un-V

balance is great, damage to the machine may resultj `.l

Accordingly, therefore, supplemental meansare pro vided forcounteracting the unbalance conditioncaused .by the unequal distributionof the clothing duringthe ex- .traction operation.

Y is shown an annular hollow balancing ring or lvchamber Y156 which'ismounted on the forward face' ofthe vertical front wall 19 ofthe'rotatable drum 11 andV itsV outside diameteris preferably less thanthe/outside diameter of the drum.` The ring 156 maybe resilientlycentered in position about the geometrical axis of the V/druniby Y meansof a plurality of bent leaf type springs'157 having portions in contactwith thezinner periphery 15,8 ofthe ring and against an inner concentricannular rigid vring -hold the sameagainstithe `front wall of the drumandY provide a dampeningl action forVv the ring 1,56jshouldfit movellaterally relative to the. drum during the extraction 'operationY arerotated at their normal .Y V'speed during the washing and extractionYoperations,Y 4the loading of the spring means .148 isrgreat enough toIn'the disclosed embodimenL-'there as Q Confined within the hollowbalancing ring 156 is a balsansa ancing liquid td oi any suitable typeand, by way of example, comprises a mixture of acetylene tetrabromide,which has a relatively high specific gravity, and a suitable thickenerto increase its viscosity to such degree as to prevent surging of theliquid and allow substantially even distribution within the ring whenthe drum is rotated at low speeds during the washing operations andbelow the critical speed of the rotatable drum when it is beingaccelerated. However, when the rotating drum exceeds its designedcritical speed with an nnb; s load of clothing therein, the rotation ofthe drum wn shift from its geometrical axis and rotate about its axis ofmass. This shifting results in the confined liquid teil moving withinthe chamber to a point diametrically opposite the unbalanced load andwhich eccentric loading by the liquid tends to shift the center of massin the direction of the geometrical center of the drum. Should, however,the unbalanced loading be great, as is more likely the case withhorizontally rotatable drums, the shiftinn of the liquid will not besufficient; therefore, as the liquid shifts, the loading on thebalancing ring 56 increases at that side which in turn causes the entirering to move laterally in the same direction against the compression ofthe opposite centering springs 157. This action results in a stillgreater counterbalancing force for the unbalanced load and inpractically all instances will provide a force surlicient to balance theload. Should the lateral movement of the balancing ring be excessive orover travel, the balancing liquid will automatically redistribute anamount sufcient to maintain the proper balance in tue system.

The rigid ring l@ carrying the springs l5? also acts as a stop to limitthe lateral outward eccentric movement of the shiftable balancing ringE56 in any one dire tion by direct Contact with its inner periphery Theresilient retaining strips lul holding the shiftable balancing ring 156in position against axial movement also provides a dampening means toprevent or restrict any tendency for the ring to hunt or oscillatelateral direction while the drum is being rotated.

Upon completion of the extraction operation and when the drum speeddrops to a sumcientiy low value, the centering springs ?.57 willovercome centrifugal force and the restraining action of the strips loland automatically shift the balancing ring baci. to its normalconcentric position about the geometrical axis of the drum.

While a single means for centering the hollow balancing ring 156 hasbeen disclosed, it is to be understood that other constructions forperforming the same function may be provided as long as they act toeectively maintain the center of mass of the rotatable drum relativelyclose to the geometrical center of the drum during the entractionoperation. Also, under some stallations wherein the contemplatedimbalance of the rotatable drum may not be excessive it is possible toprovide for adequate balancing by substituting a solid laterallybalancing ring for the hollow balancing ring and liouid.

ln the operation of a horizontal tumbler type washing machine incorpore'ng features of the present invention, the operator opens the closuredi. carried by the cabinet lo and inserts the clothing to be washed intothe interior of the rotatable drum 'all through the aligned accessopenings 2, l and de, at which time the proper quantity of detergent mayalso be included Yand the closure is then sealed by latching it tightlyagainst the gasket 57. .it the operator manipulates suitableautomatically opera ed control mechanism (not shown) to canse the propoquantity of washing liquid at the proper temperature to be conducted bythe liquid supply means 47 to the imperforate container in addition, theduration of the washing cycle is preferably set at the same time and themotor 71 for rotatingV the drum 1l at a low washing speed is also enelgied. Upon enera vation of the motor, the driving shaft d3 is rotated at areduced speed by the driven pulley 67' and the sun gear M2 rotates thedrum shaft 27 at a reduced speed through the planet carrier Hi8 becausethe gear housing 29 carrying the ring or orbit gear iii is braked orlocked against rotary movement.

vv'ith the rotating mechanism at rest, the springs 1133i reactingbetween their abutments 132 apply a force to connect the constant torqueclutch lill to the drum shaft 27A As the sun gear begins to rotate thehousing will also rotate a slight amount which in turn compresses thesprings and shifts the cam surfaces i3d on the shiftable member i3d awayfrom the abutments i553. When this slight shift occurs, the loading isremoved from t e friction discs 12d and the brake is free to hold thehousing stationary without any loss of energy through the torqt mitingclutch.

As the drum rotates, the clothing being washed is agitated in thewashing liquid by means of the elevating vanes 23 lifting the clothingtoward the top of the relatively narrow and large diameter drum and asthe clothing approaches the upper portion of the drum it drops to thebottom thereof into the washing liquid in a tumbling manner. Since thedistance the clothing falls is relatively great, the velocity of theclothing is considerably higher when compared with ordinary domestictumbler type washing machines; theref re, a more effective cleaningoperation is provided within a given length of time. rhe centeringsprings l and counterbalance, along with the damper springs @2, tend tomaintain the drum in a subtantially horizontal position during thewashing opera tion by holding the movable forward bearing 8l relativelystationary.

At the end of the washing operation, the cleaning liquid is withdrawnfrom the container 12 through the outlet opening 43S, thebralremechanism 112 is released by energizing the solenoid El and theplanetary gear housing 29 is free to rotate. As the housing rotates thebrake drum is shifted by the springs 131 to load the friction discs to aconstant value and the torque is transmitted to the drum shaft 27through the constant torque disc clutch lill to accelerate the drum to ahigh speed. This constant torque clutch is designed to limit the load onthe motor to a value less than its rated capacity. As the drum isaccelerated and exceeds its critical speed and with an unevendistribution of clothing therein, the drum pivoting about its pivotbearing 66 will shift and rotate about its center of mass rather thanthe geometrical center of the drum. r`his gyration is resisted to adegree by the centerin.cr springs 88 and the dampener mechanism 79;however, this is not normally suilicient to provide for smooth,relatively vibrationless, operation.

As the drum exceeds its critical speed, the confined balancing liquid163 in the annular balancing ring E56 shifts and redistributes itself soa major portion is opposite to the imbalance load. This action causesthe center of mass to shift or move toward the geometrical center of thedrum to help balance the load. However, should this not be sufficient,the resiliently mounted balancing ring 156 also shifts laterally againstthe centering springs 57 to apply a still greater counterbalancing forceto shift the center of the mass still further toward the geometricalcenter of the tub, and this latter movement is usually suliicient toprovide substantially vibrationless operation during the liquidextraction operation. 'v-Jhen the drum attains its full high operatingor extracting speed, the driving shaft 63, planet gearing Sg, planetarygear housing 29 and drum shaft Z7 all are rota-ted about thesubstantially horizontal axis in unison.

After a predetermined length of time of operation at the extractionspeed, the solenoid 12l is de-energized and the spring 122 applies thebrake H2. to the gear housing 29 to stop the same and at the same timeshift the rotatable brake drum 116 to remove the pressure onrtheconstarrt torque friction disc clutch 191. As the housing Y Yshaft V1.67-of the drive. motor 71.

` illustration, the control mechanism includes a rotatable cage'163,having Y.a plurality of radially outwardly open ,suitable manner.

begins to stop or slow down the drumdrivesth'e driving shaft 63 throughthe planetary gearing 59 atan lncreased Y speed. This increasedlspeedVof the drivingshaftfresults Y jin the actuation of the centrifugallyoperated brake shoesk K 146 which frictionallyV engagethe brake drum 144to decelerate the drum at a relatively rapid rate. As the deceleratingdrum approaches its washing speed, the speed of the driving shaftreaches a value where the spring means 148 retract the brake shoes 146to their disengaged position against their stops 149 to free the drumY'from interference for continued operation.

VWhen the drumV approaches its washing speed, rinsing liquid is`admittedtothe` container through the liquid supply means 47 for the agitatorinse portion of the washing cycle.

After a predetermined length of time, determined by the Y Vcontrolmechanism, the rinsing liquid is withdrawnfrom the container through theoutlet opening 48"therein and Vthe drum is again'V accelerated toextract the liquid from the clothing in the aforedescribed manner. Y Y iAt the end of the nal extraction operation, the mo- Q tor is deenergizedand the brake 143 is applied as described above to decelerate the drum,whereupon the operator need but open the closure and remove theclothasser-:4e

. solenoid 121 Vto releasethe bralie are: conditioned for ing which hasbeen both cleaned, rinsed and centrifuged.

l'n a device of the type herein described, the tumbling or washing speedofV the drum is approximately 33 R. P. 'M and the extraction speed isapproximately 600 n; P. M. Y

While the above described apparatus is suiiicie'nt for a normal washingcycle, there are times when the operator may wishptto eliminate thewashing and/ or tumbling rinseoperations and will move the controlmechanism di- Y Yor condition responsive switches may be utilized whosen Lrectly to the extraction portion of the cycle. Shouldrthis occurjvhenthe drum is at rest, the brake 112 would be released upon energizationof the solenoid`121 and the torqae limiting clutch 101 may not initiallytransmit enough torque to start the drum with the clothes therein,especially. whenwet, with the result the drum and clothes Y would remainstationary during this period.

` Accordingly, to obviate this problem if it arises, a

condition responsive control mechanism 166 is provided which inthedisclosedmodication is mounted on the 'ing pockets 169, rigidly securedto the shaft 167 in any Each pocket 169 has a relatively'lightcentrifugally operated weight 171 therein shaped to loosely titY and beguided by the pocket.` The outer end of each weight is rounded andadapted to Contact the inner periphery 172 of a surrounding annular ring173 to For the purpose ofY rotate or shift the same by sliding contactwhen'the movtor is rotating above afpredetermined speed. The an nularring'has a downwardly projecting integralarm174 which abuts yan upwardlyprojecting arm 176 ofa piv- `otable switch carrying bracket 177.` This'bracket has mounted thereon a switch, such as, for example, a mercuryswitch 178 which is Vadapted to normally lie inv a horizontal positionunder'the inuence of gravity, as

shown, or to be tilted upwardly about an oifset pivot 179 to bridge thecontacts therein to complete the circuit-*to fthe solenoid 121 of thebrake mechanism 112. Thepivot YE79 for. the switch bracket 177is'mounted'on a suitableV base or support 181 which in turn'is securedtothe Vsta- 1.

tionary portion of the motor housing or to any other suitablestationaryrstructure. In addition, apportion of the switch bracket 177is adapted to contact an abutment 182 onV the support 1.81 to limit theupward movement of the switch about the pivot 179. The leads 183 fromthe switch 178 form part'of the brake solenoid circuit` and it isobvious that the solenoid' can only be energized while the switch is initsy upwardlyctiltedposition.

Assuming the drum 11 is at rest with a load of clothing l*therein andthe operator advances the control mechanism t. ito the extractionposition, the contacts to energize the operation to carry out theextraction portion of the cycle; however, the solenoidpremainsde-energized becausethe tiltable switch 178 has not been actuated.Howeven-the drive motor 71 is energized and begins to'rotate, and indoing so rotates the drum at a low speed through the planet carrier 108and begins to tumble the clothing.-

As the drum approaches its normal'tumbling speed, the motor approachesits normal rotating` speed also.`;At

some speed below this, centrifugal force acting on theV relativelylightweights V171 increases the frictional contact or pressureV on theannular ring 173 and causes the Y same to rotate, whichY in turnovercomes the gravitational ,Y pull or resistanceV of the combinedswitch andbracket.. As the arm raises the bracket about its pivotrrto,ya predetermined angle, the mercury in the switch completes the circuittothe solenoid and energizes the same to release the brake 112 and permitthe drum to be accelerated'` to its normal. extraction speed through thetorque limiting .clutch V101. Upon the de-energization and/or decelera-Vvtion of the motor, gravity acting on the switch causes'the same toovercome the turning movement of the weights and it drops back to itsnormal position'wherein the solenoid circuit isopened. Y Y Y n It is tobe understood that the above ,description is given by way. of exampleand that'other forms of speed prime purpose is to prevent release of thebrake means, if required, until the drum is being rotated at a speedsuicientlythigh to insure its properacceleration to the Y.

extraction speeds. Y Y

From the foregoing, it can be seen that a horizontally mounted tumblertype clothes washing machine having a rotatable'drum has lbeen providedwhich is resiliently mountedY to rotate about a single stationary pivot,is normally( held ina horizontal position bycentering means but is freeto gyrate about its pivot. VAlso,fthat a means Vhas been provided forboth dampening" the magnitudeY of the gyration of the drum and balancingof therload' by means of a coniined'shiftable viscous liquidwithin aresiliently mountedchamber carried on the outer portion of the drum andthe drum is resiliently mounted toabrsorb and prevent vibrationsfrombeing transmitted to the 'i YtrifurgallyV operated braking mechanism-for' decelerating the drum at the endV of the extraction operation isprovided between the drive shaft and supporting Vframe construction. Y Y

While I have herein described and upon the drawings shown anillustrative Vembodiment of the'invention, it is to be understood thatthe invention is not limited thereto, but may comprehend otherconstructions, arrangements of parts, details `and features withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention.

It is claimed: Y

l.V In a tumbler type washing machine, the combination -V of asubstantially horizontally rotatable drum having'ra rear wall and afront wall with an access Vopening therein,

concentric shaft means secured to said rear wallfor rotating said drumabout its axis at a low washingV speed and a relatively high extractionspeed, a spaced pivot bearing for said shaft means, a resilientlymounted bearing disposed between said pivotbearing and the rear wall ofsaid drum to permit said drum to gyrate on said pivot j Ybearing aboutVa generally horizontal axis, a Vconcentric resiliently mounted hollowbalancing ring carried on the Also, a constant torqueV front wall ofsaid drum and shiftable laterally with respect to said drum when thesame is rotated above a predetermined speed under unbalanced loadconditions, a viscous balancing liquid partially filling said ring andshiftable therein above the predetermined speed to counteract unbalancedloads in said drum, and means lfor dampening the relative 4lateralmovement of said balancing ring and said drum.

2. In a tumbler type clothes washing machine, the combination of aclothes receiving drum rotatable about a generally horizontal axis, acoaxial drum shaft for rotating said drum about its horizontal axis, adrive shaft, a speed change mechanism disposed between said drivingshaft and said drum shaft to rotate said drum at a low washing speed andat a relatively high extraction speed, said speed change mechanismincluding planetary gearing, a housing for said gearing, means forholding said housing stationary to provide for low speed rotation ofsaid drum through said speed change mechanism and for releasing saidhousing for rotation to provide for high speed rotation of said drumthrough said housing, said speed change mechanism including a torquelimiting clutch disposed between said housing and drum shaft, and meansfor rendering said last named means inoperative for driving said drumthrough said housing until said drum has been initially rotated throughsaid speed change mechanism.

3. In a tumbler type clothes washing machine, the com bination of aclothes receiving drum rotatable about a generally horizontal axis, acoaxial drum shaft for rotating said drum about its horizontal axis, adrive shaft, planetary gearing disposed between said shafts for rotatingsaid drum at a low washing speed and a high extraction speed, arotatable housing for said gearing, said gearing including a sun geardriven by said driving shaft, a planet carrier connected with said drumshaft with planet gears mounted thereon in mesh with said sun gear, anorbit gear formed as part of said housing, a brake including arelatively shiftable brake drum carried by said housing for holding thesame stationary to cause said planet carrier to rotate said drum shaftat a low speed, means for releasing said brake to permit said housing torotate, a clutch between said housing and said drum shaft fortransmitting torque therethrough when said housing is rotated, meanscarried by said brake drum for engaging said clutch to load the same,resilient means acting between said brake drum and housing to limit theload on said clutch to limit the torque transmitted therethrough whenthe clothes receiving drum is accelerated to its high extraction speed,and speed responsive means for rendering said brake releasing meansinoperative until said clothes receiving drum has been initially rotatedby said planet carrier to a predetermined speed.

4. In combination, a ydriven element, a drive element, a speed changemechanism disposed between said elements whereby said driven element isdriven by said drive element at a relatively slow speed and a relativelyhigh speed, said speed change mechanism including planetary gearing, ahousing for said gearing, means for holding said housing stationary toprovide for low speed rotation of said driven element through said speedchange mechanism and for releasing sai-d housing for rotation to providefor high speed rotation of said driven element through said housing,said speed change mechanism including a torque limiting clutch disposedbetween said housing and driven element, and means for rendering saidlast named means inoperative for driving said driven element throughsaid housing until said driven element has been initially rotatedthrough said speed change mechanlsm.

5. In combination, a driven element, a drive element, planetary gearingdisposed` between said elements for rotating said driven element at arelatively low speed and a relatively high speed, a rotatable housingfor said gearing, said gearing including a sun gear driven by said driveelement, a planet carrier connected with said driven element with planetgears mounted thereon in mesh with said sun gear, an orbit gear formedas part of said housing, a brake including a relatively shiftable brakedrum carried by said housing for holding the same stationary to causesaid planet carrier to rotate said driven element at a low speed, meansfor releasing said brake to permit said housing to rotate, a clutchbetween said housing and said driven shaft for transmitting torquetherethrough when said housing is rotated, means carried by said brakedrum for engaging said clutch to load the same, resilient means actingbetween said brake drum and housing to limit the load on said clutch tolimit the torque transmitted therethrough when said driven element isaccelerated to its higher speed, and speed responsive means forrendering said brake releasing means inoperative until said drivenelement has been initially rotated by said planet carrier to apredetermined speed.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS331,450 Rothe Dec. 1, 1885 1,548,247 Bennett Aug. 4, 1925 1,893,398Chamberlain Jan. 3, 1933 2,230,345 Bradbury Feb. 4, 1941 2,284,047Edwards May 26, 1942 2,343,742 Breckenridge Mar. 7, 1944 2,346,668Dunham Apr. 18, 1944 2,361,266 Clark Oct. 24, 1944 2,399,319 Bowen et alApr. 30, 1946 2,420,592 Gerhardt May 13, 1947 2,471,217 Johnson May 24,1949 2,525,781 De Reiner Oct. 17, 1950 2,605,628 Smith Aug. 5, 19522,634,627 Flynn Apr. 14, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFTCE CERTIFIICATE0F CQRRECHON Patent No., 2,836,046 May 27p 1958 Thomas R` Smith It ishere-by certified that error appears in the printed specifieation of theabove numbered patent requiring correction and 'that the said LeitersPatent should read as corrected belowA Column 8j liney 70` for "the ring158" read me the ring 159 me.

Signed and sealed Jhis 12th day of August 1958.,

(SEAL) Atest:

KARL H" AXLINE ROBERT c. wATsoN Attesting Officer Conmissioner ofPatents

